Electrical wire and electrical wire with terminal

ABSTRACT

An electrical wire and an electrical wire with a terminal capable of diminishing the adjustment of a crimping height. There is provided an electrical wire  1  including a conductor part  11  that is made of a precipitation strengthened copper alloy having a cross-sectional area of 0.13 sq in the ISO 6722 standard and is compressed, wherein the conductor part  11  has a rate of elongation of 7% or more, and a tensile strength of 500 MPa or more. In addition, the electrical conductivity of the conductor part is 70% IACS or more.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

The present application is a division of U.S. application Ser. No.13/806,546 filed on Dec. 21, 2012, which is U.S. National Stage ofInternational Application No. PCT/JP2011/067182 filed on Jul. 21, 2011,which claims priority from Japanese Patent Application No. 2010-163614filed on Jul. 21, 2010 in the Japanese Patent Office, the disclosures ofwhich are incorporated herein by reference in their entirety.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present invention relates to an electrical wire and an electricalwire with a terminal.

BACKGROUND ART

In the background art, electrical wires having various conductorcross-sectional areas such as 0.13 sq, 0.3 sq, and 0.35 sq are known. Insuch electrical wires, as a conductor part, pure copper or aninexpensive copper alloy, or pure aluminum or an aluminum alloy is usedin consideration of workability or price.

JP-A-9-82375, JP-A-2007-157509 and JP-A-2009-26695 disclose suchelectrical wires and connector parts.

SUMMARY OF INVENTION Technical Problem

In a vehicle, large numbers of electrical wires are used. Therefore, theweight of the electrical wires has an effect on the weight of thevehicle, such that when considering weight-savings in the vehicle,weight-savings in the electrical wires is also to be considered.Particularly, an electrical wire of 0.3 sq or 0.35 sq is used as anelectrical wire for the vehicle, and the substitution of the electricalwire with an electrical wire of 0.13 sq may lead to weight-savings inthe vehicle. However, when an electrical wire of 0.13 sq is used, thefollowing problems occur.

That is, in the electrical wire of 0.3 sq or 0.35 sq, the generalterminal fixing load in an electrical wire connecting portion of aterminal having a pair of V-shaped or U-shaped barrels, or the like is70 N or more, such that in a case where the electrical wire issubstituted with the electrical wire of 0.13 sq with a smallcross-sectional area of a conductor, and the electrical wire connectingportion is crimped to the electrical wire, it is difficult to obtain thesame terminal fixing load of 70 N or more as with the electrical wire of0.3 sq or 0.35 sq. More specifically, in a case where the terminalfixing load is set to 70 N or more, a crimping height C/H when acrimping width C/W of the electrical wire connecting portion is made tobe constant has to be within a predetermined range. However, when theconductor part is made of annealed copper or pure copper, the range ofthe crimping height for setting the terminal fixing load of theelectrical wire of 0.13 sq to 70 N or more is not broad. As a resultthereof, accuracy is required when the terminal is crimped, and therebyit is difficult to use the electrical wire of 0.13 sq instead of theelectrical wire of 0.3 sq or 0.35 sq.

In addition, using hard copper or a hard copper alloy as the conductorpart of the fine wire of 0.13 sq, for example, may be considered fromthe viewpoint of tensile strength or the like, but even when hard copperor a hard copper alloy is used as the conductor part, the range of thecrimping height is not broad.

In addition, in the above description, the electrical wire for a vehicleis described as an example, but the problem is not limited to theelectrical wire for a vehicle, and may be applied to other electricalwires of 0.13 sq where adjustment of the crimping height is difficult.

The invention has been made to solve the above-described problem in therelated art, and an object of the invention is to provide an electricalwire and an electrical wire with a terminal capable of diminishing theadjustment of a crimping height.

Solution to Problem

According to an aspect of the invention, there is provided an electricalwire including a conductor part that is made of a precipitationstrengthened copper alloy having a cross-sectional area of 0.13 sq inthe ISO 6722 standard and is compressed, wherein the conductor part hasa rate of elongation of 7% or more, and a tensile strength of 500 MPa ormore.

According to this electrical wire, the conductor part that is made ofthe precipitation strengthened copper alloy is included, the conductorpart has a rate of elongation of 7% or more, and a tensile strength of500 MPa or more. Therefore, tensile strength of the conductor part isimproved to some extent by work strain (work hardening), and a statewhere the terminal is fixed to the conductor part is easily maintained.Accordingly, it is possible to broaden the region where the terminalfixing load is 70 N or more, and even when variations in crimping arepresent, it is easy to realize an electrical wire of 0.13 sq thatsatisfies the required terminal fixing load. Therefore, it is possibleto diminish the adjustment of the crimping height. The precipitationstrengthened copper alloy may be specifically made of a copper alloysuch as Cu—Cr—Zr series, Cu—Co—P series, Cu—Cr—Sn series, and Cu—Fe—Pseries. Preferable blending ratio of the copper alloy is disclosed inDescription of Embodiments.

In addition, according to another aspect of the invention, there isprovided an electrical wire including a conductor part that is made of aprecipitation strengthened copper alloy having a cross-sectional area of0.13 sq in the ISO 6722 standard, wherein the conductor part has a rateof elongation of 7% or more, and a tensile strength of 500 MPa or more,and the electrical conductivity of the conductor part is 70% IACS ormore.

According to this electrical wire, the electrical conductivity of theconductor part is 70% IACS or more. Here, the electrical conductivity ofthe conductor has an effect on the tensile strength and the tensilestrength is preferably 500 MPa or more, and in a case where theconductor has a tensile strength such that the electrical conductivityis 70% or more, it is possible to use an electrical wire of 0.13 sq incombination with a 5 A fuse and it is possible to use an electrical wireas a power source line having a current value that is not as large asthis value.

In addition, in the electrical wire of the invention, it is preferablethat in precipitation strengthened copper alloy, the rate of decrease instrength be 18% or less with respect to a rate of decrease of 30% in thecross-sectional area.

According to this electrical wire, in precipitation strengthened copperalloy, the rate of decrease in the strength is 18% or less with respectto a rate of decrease of 30% in the cross-sectional area, such that itis possible to provide an electrical wire with a terminal in which thedecrease in the strength is small, and that is advantageous in the caseof processing the electrical wire with a terminal.

In addition, according to another aspect of the invention, there isprovided an electrical wire with a terminal. The electrical wireincludes the above-described electrical wire and a terminal thatincludes a pair of barrels and that compresses the conductor part of theelectrical wire and is crimped thereto when the pair of barrels is bentin a direction where the barrels come close to each other.

According to this electric wire with the terminal, the electrical wireincludes the above-described electrical wire and the terminal thatincludes a pair of barrels and that compresses the conductor part of theelectrical wire and is crimped thereto when the pair of barrels is bentin a direction where the barrels come close to each other. Here,generally, in manufacturing a fine wire of 0.13 sq or the like, there isa tendency to use a material such as hard copper and a hard copper alloywhose tensile strength is made to be 700 MPa or more in advance as theconductor part. This tensile strength is necessary because the rate ofdecrease in strength is high in a portion where the conductorcross-sectional area is diminished due to the crimping of the terminal,in consideration of a work hardening characteristic of the hard copperor hard copper alloy, and as a result thereof, elongation is sacrificed.However, in the above-described electrical wire, it is not necessary toincrease the tensile strength to an extent of 700 MPa, and the conductorpart has work hardening characteristics due to the work strain to someextent, such that it is possible to allow the rate of decrease instrength occurred due to the crimping of the terminal to be small.Accordingly, it is possible to suppress the decrease in the strength inthe crimping portion accompanying the decrease in the cross-sectionalarea.

In addition, in the electrical wire with the terminal, it is preferablethat the crimping height that represents the height of the terminal inthe crimping portion thereof be equal to or greater than 0.67 mm andequal to or less than 0.87 mm, and the terminal fixing load at thecrimping portion be 70 N or more when measured according to themeasuring method defined in JASO D 616.

According to this electrical wire with the terminal, the crimping heightis equal to or greater than 0.67 mm and equal to or less than 0.87 mm,and a terminal fixing load at the crimping portion is 70 N or more whenmeasured according to a measuring method defined in JASO D 616, suchthat it is possible to provide an electrical wire with a terminal whichhas the same 70 N terminal fixing load as the electrical wire of 0.3 sqor 0.35 sq.

Advantageous Effect of the Invention

According to the invention, it is possible to provide an electrical wireand an electrical wire with a terminal capable of diminishing theadjustment of a crimping height.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram illustrating an example of an electricalwire according to an embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional diagram of an electrical wire with aterminal according to an embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 3 is a graph illustrating a correlation between a rate ofelongation and tensile strength.

FIG. 4 is a graph illustrating a characteristic of an electric wire of0.13 sq including a conductor part according to the embodiment.

FIG. 5 is a graph illustrating a correlation between a crimping heightand a terminal fixing load in regard to electrical wires of an exampleand comparative examples 1 and 2.

FIG. 6 is a graph illustrating work hardening characteristics of eachmetal.

DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS

Hereinafter, a preferred embodiment of the invention will be describedwith reference to the accompanying drawings. FIG. 1 is a schematicdiagram illustrating an example of an electrical wire according to anembodiment of the invention.

As shown in FIG. 1, an electrical wire 1 according to the presentembodiment is configured by coating a conductor part 11 with aninsulating part 12. The conductor part 11 is formed by twisting andcompressing each of strands 11 a. In the present embodiment, theconductor part 11 is made of a precipitation strengthened copper alloy,and specifically, made of a copper alloy such as Cu—Cr—Zr series,Cu—Co—P series, Cu—Cr—Sn series, and Cu—Fe—P series.

In regard to the conductor part 11, the blending ratio of each metal isas follows. Specifically, in a case where the conductor part 11 is madeof Cu—Cr—Zr series copper alloy, the content of Cr is 0.50 to 1.50% bymass, the content of Zr is 0.05 to 0.15% by mass, the content of Sn is0.10 to 0.20% by mass, and the remainder is Cu. In addition, where theconductor part 11 is made of Cu—Co—P series copper alloy, the content ofCo is 0.20 to 0.30% by mass, the content of P is 0.07 to 0.12% by mass,the content of Ni is 0.02 to 0.05% by mass, the content of Sn is 0.08 to0.12% by mass, the content of Zn is 0.01 to 0.04% by mass, and theremainder is Cu.

Here, an electrical wire with a terminal in which the terminal iscrimped to the electrical wire 1 according to the present embodimentwill be described. FIG. 2 shows a cross-sectional diagram illustratingan electrical wire with the terminal according to the embodiment of theinvention. As shown in FIG. 2, a terminal 20 includes a pair of barrels21 that compresses the conductor part 11, and is crimped thereto. Thepair of barrels 21 is erected from both ends of the bottom surfaceportion 22 of the terminal 20, and has a V-shaped or U-shaped crosssection before being crimped to the conductor part 11. In addition, whenbeing crimped, the pair of barrels 21 is bent in a direction where thedistal end sides of the V-shaped or U-shaped portion come into contactto each other. In this manner, the terminal 20 is crimped to theconductor part 11.

In addition, generally, the height of the terminal 20 in the crimpingportion is called the crimping height C/H, and the width of the terminal20 is called the crimping width C/W.

In addition, in the present embodiment, the rate of elongation of theconductor part 11 in the present embodiment is 7% or more, and thetensile strength is 500 MPa or more. When the rate of elongation is lessthan 7%, in a case where measurement by a tensile testing machinedefined in JIS-Z-2241 is performed, it is difficult to obtain a terminalfixing load of 70 N, since sufficient work hardening is not obtained atthe time of crimping the terminal and the strength in the conductor part11 becomes small. Similarly, when the tensile strength is less than 500MPa, in a case where measurement by a tensile testing machine defined inJIS-Z-2241 is performed, it is difficult to obtain a terminal fixingload of 70 N at a broad range of crimping height. In addition, thetensile strength is obtained from a testing power (N) measured by atensile testing machine defined in JIS-Z-2241, and the rate ofelongation is obtained from the length between index points measured byusing an elongation measuring device.

In addition, it is preferable that the rate of elongation be less than20%. The reason for this restriction is as follows. The rate ofelongation is correlated with the tensile strength, and when the rate ofelongation varies, the tensile strength also tends to vary. From thistendency, in the case of an alloy including copper as a base substance,when the rate of elongation is 20% or more, the tensile strength of 500MPa can no longer be maintained. In addition, it is preferable that thetensile strength be less than 750 MPa. The reason for this restrictionis as follows. In the case of an alloy including copper as a basesubstance, when the tensile strength is 750 MPa or more, the rate ofelongation of 7% cannot be maintained any more.

To manufacture the conductor part 11 having such a rate of elongationand tensile strength, the above-described precipitation strengthenedcopper alloy must be used, and in the case of using annealed copper orpure copper, the above-described conductor part 11 cannot bemanufactured.

FIG. 3 shows a graph illustrating a correlation between the rate ofelongation and the tensile strength. As shown in FIG. 3, when purecopper or a dilute copper alloy is thermally refined in a manner suchthat the tensile strength is 500 MPa, the rate of elongation becomes 2to 3%. In addition, although not shown in FIG. 3, when the rate ofelongation is 7% or more, the tensile strength becomes less than 400 MPato a large extent. Therefore, in the electrical wire of 0.13 sqaccording to the present embodiment, the precipitation strengthenedcopper alloy is used for the conductor part 11.

For example, as shown in FIG. 3, in the case of Cu—Co—P series copperalloy, when the rate of elongation is set to 7%, it is possible toobtain a tensile strength of approximately 530 MPa, and when the tensilestrength is set to 500 MPa, it is possible to obtain the rate ofelongation of approximately 9%. In addition, in the case of Cu—Cr—Zrseries copper alloy, when the rate of elongation is set to 7%, it ispossible to obtain a tensile strength of approximately 587 MPa, and whenthe tensile strength is set to 500 MPa, it is possible to obtain therate of elongation of approximately 13%.

In addition, in regard to the above-described precipitation strengthenedcopper alloy, other than the above-described possibilities, when theblending amount is changed or a composition itself is changed andthereby the rate of elongation is equal to or greater than 7% and equalto or less than 20%, it is possible to realize the conductor part 11having a tensile strength equal to or greater than 500 MPa and equal toor less than 750 MPa. In addition, according to the electrical wire of0.13 sq that includes the conductor part 11, it is possible to broadenthe crimping height range (see FIG. 5) for realizing a terminal fixingload of 70 N or more, and it is possible to diminish the adjustment ofthe range of the crimping height.

Next, a method of manufacturing the electrical wire 1 of 0.13 sq thatincludes the conductor unit 11 will be described. In manufacturing theelectrical wire 1 according to the present embodiment, casting, solutiontreatment, intermediate drawing, finish drawing, twisting andcompressing, refining heat treatment also serving as aging treatment, orthe like is performed.

FIG. 4 is a graph illustrating characteristics of the electrical wire 1of 0.13 sq that includes the conductor part 11 according to the presentembodiment. After performing the casting, the solution treatment, theintermediate drawing, the finish drawing, the twisting and compressing,or the like, the refining heat treatment is performed at temperaturesand for a time shown in FIG. 4. Specifically, in the case of theCu—Cr—Zr series copper alloy, the refining heat treatment is performedat temperatures of 390 to 440° C. for 4 hours, and thereby it ispossible to obtain the conductor part 11 having a rate of elongation of7% or more and the tensile strength of 500 MPa or more. In addition, inthe case of the Cu—CO—P series copper alloy, the refining heat treatmentis performed at temperatures of 385 to 405° C. for 4 hours, and therebyit is possible to obtain the conductor part 11 having the rate ofelongation of 7% or more and the tensile strength of 500 MPa or more.

In addition, it is preferable that the electrical conductivity of theconductor part 11 be 70% IACS or more. In the present embodiment, whenthe rate of elongation of the conductor part 11 is 7% or more, and thetensile strength is 500 MPa or more, it is possible to diminish theadjustment of the crimping height. However, when the electrical wire 1is manufactured ignoring electrical conductivity of the conductor part11, there is a case where the electrical conductivity decreases, and inthis case, the electrical wire 1 may not be used as a signal line fortransmitting a switch signal or the like.

Here, it is known that tensile strength and electrical conductivity havea correlation. Therefore, when the conductor part 11 is manufacturedonly by focusing on the rate of elongation and the tensile strength, itmay only provide the conductor part 11 having a low electricalconductivity and thereby the electrical wire 1 of 0.13 sq may be usedfor only the signal line. However, when the heat refinement for thetensile strength is performed in a manner such that not only the tensilestrength is 500 MPa or more, but also the electrical conductivity is 70%IACS or more, it is possible to manufacture the conductor part 11 to beused as not only a signal line but also as a power source line of anelectrical wire of 0.13 sq for allowing a low-current to be flowed.

Next, an example of the electrical wire 1 of 0.13 sq according to thepresent embodiment will be described.

First, as an example, the electrical wire 1 was obtained by using as theconductor part 11 the Cu—Cr—Zr series copper alloy subjected to therefining heat treatment at a temperature of 420° C. for 4 hours afterthe casting, the solution treatment, the intermediate drawing, thefinish drawing, and the twisting and compressing. At this time, in theblending ratio, Cr was 0.79% by mass, Zr was 0.11% by mass, Sn was 0.10%by mass, and the remainder was Cu. The rate of elongation at this timewas 10% and the tensile strength was 548 MPa.

In addition, as a comparative example 1, there was obtained anelectrical wire using a conductor part of Cu—Sn series hard copper alloyto which a degree of processing with a work strain of 7 or more wasapplied by performing the casting and rolling, the intermediate drawing,the finish drawing, and the twisting and compressing without performinga heat treatment after the casting. At this time, in the blending ratio,Sn was 0.33% by mass, and the remainder was Cu. In addition, the workstrain was 7.7. The rate of elongation at this time was 1.8% and thetensile strength was 828 MPa.

In addition, as a comparative example 2, the electrical wire wasobtained by using as the conductor part an annealed copper alloysubjected to an annealing at a temperature of 250° C. for 1 hour afterthe casting and rolling, the solution treatment, the intermediatedrawing, and the twisting and compressing. At this time, in the blendingratio, O was 135 ppm and the remainder was Cu. The rate of elongation atthis time was 21% and the tensile strength was 219 MPa.

FIG. 5 shows a graph illustrating a correlation between a crimpingheight and a terminal fixing load in regard to each of the electricalwires in the example and the comparative examples 1 and 2. In addition,the terminal fixing rate shown in FIG. 5 was measured by a measuringmethod defined in JASO D 616.

As shown in FIG. 5, in a case where the conductor part of the electricalwire of 0.13 sq in the example was exposed, and the terminal wascrimped, a result was obtained in which the terminal fixing load of 70 Nor more was exhibited in a crimping height range of 0.67 to 0.87 mm.

In addition, in a case where the conductor part of the electrical wireof 0.13 sq in the comparative example 1 was exposed, and the terminalwas crimped, a result was obtained in which the terminal fixing load of70 N or more was exhibited in a crimping height range of 0.73 to 0.86mm. In addition, in a case where the conductor part of the electricalwire of 0.13 sq in the comparative example 2 was exposed, and theterminal was crimped, a result was obtained in which the terminal fixingload of 70 N or more was exhibited in a crimping height range of 0.75 to0.85 mm.

As described above, in the electrical wire 1 of 0.13 sq representing thepresent embodiment, it is possible to make the rate of elongation equalto or greater than 7% and equal to or less than 20%, to make the tensilestrength equal to or greater than 500 MPa and less than 750 MPa, and tobroaden the crimping height range for realizing a terminal fixing loadof 70 N or more, compared to the case where the conductor part 11 washard copper or annealed copper. Therefore, defective products below thestandard do not easily occur and it is not necessary to frequentlyexamine the crimping height.

In this manner, according to the electrical wire 1 of 0.13 sq accordingto the present embodiment, the conductor part 11 made of theprecipitation strengthened copper alloy is included, the rate ofelongation of the conductor part 11 is 7% or more, and the tensilestrength is 500 MPa or more. Therefore, in a case where the tensileevaluation on the electrical wire 1 is performed, the tensile strengthof the conductor part 11 is improved to some extent by work strain (workhardening), and a state where the terminal 20 is fixed to the conductorpart is easily maintained. Accordingly, it is possible to broaden aregion where the terminal fixing load is 70 N or more, and even whenvariation in crimping are present, it is easy to realize an electricalwire of 0.13 sq that satisfies the required terminal fixing load.Therefore, it is possible to diminish the adjustment of the crimpingheight.

In addition, the electrical conductivity of the conductor part 11 is 70%IACS or more. Here, the electrical conductivity of the conductor has aneffect on the tensile strength and the tensile strength is preferably500 MPa or more, and in a case where the conductor has a tensilestrength such that the electrical conductivity is 70% IACS or more, itis possible to use the electrical wire of 0.13 sq in combination with a5 A fuse and it is possible to use the electrical wire as a power sourceline having a current value that is not as large as this value.

In addition, use of a Corson alloy or a beryllium alloy as the conductorpart 11 may be considered to broaden the range of the crimping height,but in this case, it is difficult to use the conductor part 11 incombination with a 5 A fuse because of the electrical resistance of theconductor part 11. On the contrary, according to the copper alloy of thepresent embodiment, this difficulty does not occur, and thereby there isan advantage over the related art.

In addition, according to the electrical wire with the terminal of thepresent embodiment, the crimping height is equal to or greater than 0.67mm and equal to or less than 0.87 mm, and the terminal fixing load is 70N or more when measured according to a measuring method defined in JASOD 616, such that it is possible to provide an electrical wire with aterminal which has the same 70 N terminal fixing load as the electricalwire of 0.3 sq or 0.35 sq.

Hereinbefore, the invention is described based on the embodiment, butthe invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment andvarious changes may be made without departing from the scope of theinvention. For example, the method of manufacturing the electrical wire1 of 0.13 sq according to the embodiment is not limited to the abovedescription, and may be changed depending on the kind of theprecipitation strengthened copper alloy.

In addition, in regard to the electrical wire 2 with the terminal inwhich the terminal 20 is crimped to the conductor part 11 of theelectrical wire 1 of 0.13 sq according to the embodiment, there areadvantages as follows.

From FIG. 5, it can be seen that even in the hard copper, the range ofthe crimping height to make the terminal fixing load 70 N or more is tosome extent broad. However, the copper alloy as indicated by the presentembodiment is advantageous in the aspect of strength for crimping theterminal 20 as shown in FIG. 6. FIG. 6 shows a graph illustrating a workhardening characteristic of each metal. For example, in a state wherethe terminal 20 is not crimped and the conductor part 11 is notcompressed (the reduction ratio in the cross-sectional area is 0%), thecopper alloy illustrated in the present embodiment has 540 MPa, and thehard copper has 750 MPa.

When the terminal 20 is crimped, the conductor part is compressed andthe cross-sectional area of the conductor part 11 becomes 70% withrespect to the cross-sectional area before compressing (the reductionratio in the cross-sectional area is 30%). At this time, the copperalloy illustrated in the present embodiment is advantageous over thehard copper from the aspect of the strength after crimping on the basisof the following grounds.

Here, the conductor part 11 (metal) has a characteristic of beinghardened when it is compressed by the crimping. The hardening itselfincreases the strength in the crimping portion. On the other hand, thecross-sectional area of the conductor 11 decreases by the crimping. Thereduction itself in the cross-sectional area decreases the strength inthe crimping portion. Therefore, the strength after the crimping iscalculated from the hardened ratio and reduction ratio in thecross-sectional area due to the crimping.

In the case of the copper alloy representing the present embodiment, thestrength before the compression can be expressed by 521 [MPa]×S[mm²] (Sis the cross-sectional area)=521 S[N]. On the other hand, in the case ofthe reduction ratio in the cross-sectional area being 30%, the strengthafter the compression is 613 [MPa]×0.7 S[mm²]≈423 S[N]. That is, thestrength is reduced by 521 S[N]−429 S[N]=92 S[N]. When this is expressedwith a reduction ratio from the strength before the compression, it isdecreased by 92 S[N]±521 S[N]=18%.

On the other hand, in the case of the hard copper, the strength beforethe compression is 750 [MPa]×S[mm²]=750 S[N], and the strength after thecompression is 775 [MPa]×0.7 S[mm²]≈543 S[N]. That is, the strength isreduced by 750 S[N]−543 S[N]=207 S[N]. When this is expressed with areduction ratio from the strength before the compression, it isdecreased by 207 S[N]±750 S[N]=28%.

When comparing the two examples described above with each other, thereduction of the strength in the copper alloy illustrating the presentembodiment is smaller than that in the hard alloy. That is, even in astage where the electric wire 2 with the terminal is processed, theelectrical wire 1 according to the present embodiment is advantageous.In addition, it is preferable that the reduction ratio in the strengthbe small, and more preferably, the reduction ratio be 18% or less asdescribed above.

INDUSTRIAL APPLICABILITY

According to the invention, it is possible to provide an electrical wireand an electrical wire with a terminal capable of diminishing theadjustment of a crimping height.

The present application is based on Japanese Patent Application No.2010-163614, the entire contents of which are incorporated herein byreference.

The invention claimed is:
 1. An electrical wire, comprising: a conductorpart that is made of a precipitation strengthened copper alloy having across-sectional area of 0.13 sq in ISO 6722 standard, wherein theconductor part has a rate of elongation of 7% or more, and a tensilestrength of 500 MPa or more, and an electrical conductivity of theconductor part is 70% IACS or more, wherein in the precipitationstrengthened copper alloy, a rate of decrease in strength is 18% or lesswith respect to a rate of decrease of 30% in a cross-sectional area. 2.The electrical wire according to claim 1, wherein the precipitationstrengthened copper alloy is made of a copper alloy selected fromCu—Cr—Zr series, Cu—Co—P series, Cu—Cr—Sn series, and Cu—Fe—P series. 3.The electrical wire according claim 1, wherein the conductor part ismade of Cu—Cr—Zr series copper alloy, the content of Cr is 0.50 to 1.50%by mass, the content of Zr is 0.05 to 0.15% by mass, the content of Snis 0.10 to 0.20% by mass, and the remainder is Cu.
 4. The electricalwire according claim 1, wherein the conductor part is made of Cu—Co—Pseries copper alloy, the content of Co is 0.20 to 0.30% by mass, thecontent of P is 0.07 to 0.12% by mass, the content of Ni is 0.02 to0.05% by mass, the content of Sn is 0.08 to 0.12% by mass, the contentof Zn is 0.01 to 0.04% by mass, and the remainder is Cu.
 5. Anelectrical wire with a terminal, comprising: the electrical wireaccording claim 1; and a terminal that includes a pair of barrels andthat compresses the conductor part of the electrical wire and is crimpedthereto forming a crimping portion when the pair of barrels is bent in adirection where the barrels come close to each other.
 6. The electricalwire with the terminal according to claim 5, wherein a crimping heightthat represents a height of the terminal in the crimping portion thereofis equal to or greater than 0.67 mm and equal to or less than 0.87 mm,and a terminal fixing load at the crimping portion is 70 N or more whenmeasured according to a measuring method defined in JASO D 616.